platform moment
They may be old friends who embraced having, after too much time apart, bumped into each other on the train platform. They might be young sweethearts saying good-bye after a fun day together. In the moment, one or both may have seized upon a desire to express something that had been left inchoate but simmering.
This much I surmised: given the surprised but delighted demeanour of the young man, I believe I was witness to be a moment of impromptu embrace by the young woman who saw my camera aimed at them — the Paparazzo prompt. There may be much more mulling within that quixotic response.
I was thankful and pleased to have captured a moment of friendly warmth. Across my photographic walks, I look for expressions of random kindness, or perhaps the awkward but palpable moments of intimacy, in public settings. As ephemeral signs of connection, these moments — especially at this time — matter so much to me, for my being and my art.
The theme in today’s image of embrace as art is grounded in several background elements: the buoyant yellow train door, the red pin-striping above it on the train’s carriage, the equally colourful tread on the station platform and the framing properties presented by the stainless steel bollards on either side of young couple.
Beyond the elements of visual delight and direction, which are ends in themselves, I have used the photographic devices of motion and double exposure to convey foremost a story: of both the episodic motion of a busy train station and the implied multiplicity of intentions hidden in the spontaneity of a momentary embrace triggered by the gaze of a wandering street photographer.
The practice of photography is a conjuring art.
nice image.